Major Mars Rover Contest & Robotics Congress to be Held in Poland

More than 300 young engineers from around the world are scheduled to participate in the Third Annual European Rover Challenge (ERC), a major international Mars rover contest powered by the Mars Society and held in Podkarpackie, Poland. ERC is Europe’s largest rover-robotics competition that brings together students to design and build the next generation of Mars rovers.

Along with the ERC, the first ever European Robotics Congress will be convened September 10-13, 2016 at the Exhibition & Congress Center of Podkarpackie. This will involve a variety of presentations and demonstrations about the main principles and objectives of Poland’s space strategy. The first two ERC contests, also held in Poland, enjoyed incredible popularity with attendance reaching approximately 50,000 people.

“We are glad to be hosting again the ERC 2016 event, which we feel will contribute to promoting the Podkarpackie region as a place that encourages innovation and supports the development of new technologies, including the aviation and aerospace sectors. The event will also serve as a tremendous opportunity for exchanging experiences and industrial knowledge between the business and science sectors and create a community of people open to challenges that require unconventional thinking,” said Wladyslaw Ortyl, Marshall of the Podkarpackie Region.

The event's exhibition zone will host a series of scientific and technological demonstrations where participants, among others, will be able to learn the basics of robotics or use a flight simulator. In addition, the Exhibition & Congress Center will host the European Space Agency Citizens Debate on Space for Europe organized simultaneously in 22 member states, during which the participants will connect directly with ESA CEO Johann Woerner.

“This Saturday’s debate will discuss the meaning of the universe to an average citizen. Participants in the conference will learn about the future development of the Polish space sector and have a chance to learn about career prospects and emerging business opportunities for companies in the growing space sector,” added Lukasz Wilczynski, European Space Foundation President.

Please note that all attractions and exhibits at the ERC and European Robotics Congress are open to the public and admission is free. For more information about the four-day gathering, please visit the ERC web site.

About ERC
ERC is Europe's largest space and robotics event addressed to the representatives of science and business sectors, new-tech, students and the general public, powered by the Mars Society. Previous editions of the event were attended by over 50,000 participants. ERC is organized by the European Space Foundation and Podkarpackie region. The honorary patronage over the event was taken by the Poland’s Ministry of Development and Ministry of Science & Higher Education, European Space Agency, National Research & Development Centre and the Polish Space Agency.